Push and Pull (Sirius Black X Reader)

Chapter 17

This morning, I watched Sirius make homemade bread as I sat across the counter from him. He was wearing a short-sleeved shirt, and the sleeves hugged his biceps a little too snugly for me to ignore as he kneaded the dough. The movement of his hands, the strands of hair that fell across his brow. It was nearly too much, and I had to excuse myself. 

I immediately threw on work clothes, and then I went in to work on my off day.

I immerse myself in my proposal so I don't have to think about Sirius or his body. I stay in my office and draft appeal after appeal, organizing them into neat piles based on how assertive I want to be when I oppose Hal. I have been at work for three hours when there's a knock on the door.

I think about not opening it. I'm barely business casual—a pencil skirt and a blouse that's a couple sizes too big and tucked in messily, my hair wild, pinned out of my face with my wand. My shoes are god knows where, and there's a run on the left leg of my stocking along the inside of my thigh. I got ready too quickly, not thinking anyone would notice.

But the door opens anyway. I'm still kneeling on the floor in a state of indecision.

"Hey, I thought I heard you in here."

"Noah, hi," I breathe and look up from the stacks of parchment on the floor to see one of my coworkers.

"I haven't seen you in ages," he says to me and smiles, easing the door shut behind him. He leaves it cracked open a couple of inches as I clamber to my feet. "You okay?"

"Yeah! Yeah, of course. You know how it is," I say, my cheeks going warm.

"Am I interrupting?" he asks with an amused smile.

"No, of course not. Noah!" I repeat his name, in shock at his appearance. It's true; we haven't seen each other in months. He was once one of my favorite coworkers until I was moved to a different shift. He just smiles as I clear the seat across from my desk of parchment, setting the stack on a bare spot on my bookshelf. "How are you?"

"I'm doing really well. And you—you look great," he says and takes the seat I free up. I sit across from him.

"Oh, you're too kind."

"No, really, Y/N. You look really good. Much better than last time I saw you—not that you weren't beautiful," he clarifies. "Just that you look happier now. Healthier, too."

"Oh, well, I feel better."

"I'm glad to hear. I was worried about you."

I try to come up with a change of topic, digging through my mind to think of something—anything—to say. "So," I say, a little too loud, "how are things with you and Gracie?"

"Ah," he says with a wince, leaning back in his chair and folding his arms behind his head. His eyes are crinkled at the corner in discomfort. "No, uh, that didn't really work out."

"So sorry to bring it up."

"No, don't be," he says. "She and I...Well, we weren't really together long enough for it to get serious, you know?"

"Yeah, of course."

"And how's your man? Uh...Ryan?"

"Remus," I correct him, scuffing my foot against the floor. 

"Yeah, sorry. Nice guy."

"Yeah, we're not together anymore."

Noah's smile doesn't waver, but he tilts his head to the side slightly. "No?" he asks.

"No."

"Good to know," he says. He bites his lip before he changes the subject. "So, what are you doing here on your day off?" He looks around at the mess of parchment, running a hand through his light brown hair.